Lockdowns, isolation, loss of jobs, uncertainty, clouds of bad news,
economic instability, the list may go on and on. These are some of the words
that pop up when we hear about this “COVID Pandemic”. Guess what all these
factors have in common? They are all enemies of a healthy stable mind.
“Mental health” is one of the most affected human characteristics after
“Physical health” that has been affected in this situation. One of the major
components that affect Mental health is
anxiety.
Anxiety in the pre-and-post COVID time is and would be the most widespread
mental imbalance. Individuals have been affected on many levels. The grief
of missing important life milestones like birthdays, anniversaries, and
graduations to emptiness caused because of losing your loved ones. Such is
the anxiety-ridden reality of not just India, but the whole world. With the
huge array of the population that exists, some can cope well but some can’t.
But as this pandemic keeps on dragging the emotional coping mechanism &
resilience might come to a standstill. Many experts like Jane Webber from
around the globe have started comparing “COVID-anxiety & related mental
conditions” to
PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) of those soldiers of wars.
Quoting Jane Webber, a professor of counselor education at Kean University,
New Jersey “We’re living constantly with a level of fear, a heightened state
of arousal, much like Vietnam vets and Iraqi vets live with every day.” With
her experience with counseling the survivors of the 9/11’ aftermath, she
believes that the human SNS (sympathetic nervous system) can only stay in
this frenetic state for so long before it crashes. Another psychologist
Shauna Springer, who specializes in the domain of military veterans-related
PTSD is of the opinion that the situation that we face now is a state of
chronic threat response. The long-term continuing state of being in
hyper-aroused survival mode.
Now, focusing on the effects that COVID-anxiety brings with it, we first
come to the most common health condition “Poor Sleep”. It is a double-edged
sword that the whole world is under right now. It’s like a feedback look
mechanism with anxiety leading to poor sleep followed by lack of REM sleep
leading to anxiety, stress, and depression. Another common symptom that is
associated with the problem turning big is when an individual focuses mainly
on the negative aspect of things. Such as the news headlines reporting the
increased number of cases of people with Covid-19 and the increased number
of deaths due to the same. Taking an example, if an individual hears good
news followed by bad news & the latter takes all the attention then this is
a bad sign. According to some psychologists, if we are spending our time
engrossed in what may happen, waiting for bad news, that’s another sign that
conditions are getting inclined toward the clinical range. Another issue
that is adding to the anxiety & is faced by many, especially young adults is
the guilt of gushing out feelings on loved ones. This is likely to happen
when individuals are in close proximity to people for a long time & they
haven’t adjusted to that.
Another major anxiety pothole is the loss of pleasure & interest. When
individuals lose the taste for socializing, and connecting with others, and
stop reaching out to family & friends things start getting ugly. This is an
immediate sign that speaks to getting help and support.
With all these negative emotions & states what should an individual do? The
first & foremost thing to do is to reach out & connect. Stay socially
connected with friends and loved ones even if you are physically unreachable
& apart. Also, a good practice would be to not just rely on social media but
actually, call your inner circle on a rotation basis. This is especially
required if you know that the person could be isolated. Be there for others
& others would be there for you. Giving a platform & space to our loved ones
to open up about their experiences and anxiety during this pandemic era and
sharing your own experience will help you ease out. If we connect, we
survive. Well biologically speaking, humans as a species did survive because
of our corporation & social behavior. Another thing to add up to your to-do
list during these anxiety-filled days would be to breathe deeply and
meditate. Well, this might be an obvious one but ask people who have been
through therapy. The most common reply would be “Deep breathing is the most
important thing; it doesn’t cost anything and it works”.
Different things work for different people. Try the above-mentioned things,
practice gratitude, and look after your mental health. Consult a
psychologist if necessary, make a schedule, learn the skill that you wanted
to learn, crack a smile, and stay optimistic.